Law lords allow human rights claims against Scottish prisons

Thousands of prison inmates and former prisoners are expected to win more than £70m in compensation for breaches of their human rights after a far-reaching ruling by the House of Lords yesterday.

The Scottish prison service will be sued by inmates who endured "slopping out", segregation and other breaches of their civil rights after the peers ruled that anyone living in Scotland could pursue a human rights case dating back as far as 1999.

In a decision which has substantial legal implications for Scottish ministers, the law lords ruled that a 12-month time limit on filing Human Rights Act cases in England and Wales did not apply to Scotland.

In a test case brought by four prisoners who had been put in solitary confinement, the law lords agreed - by a narrow three to two majority - that the act that set up the Scottish parliament in 1999 and devolved responsibility for human rights legislation did not set a time limit on human rights cases.

Tony Kelly, a lawyer acting for hundreds of prisoners in these cases, said the ruling meant any alleged breach of the act by a public authority in Scotland over the past eight years could now be taken to court.

"This is not simply a legal nicety," he said. "This gives litigants in Scotland the full measure of protection in court actions free from any technical constraints."

The ruling means that thousands of prisoners' cases which were frozen in the courts until the time limit issue could be settled will now be revived. The Scottish prison service had initially estimated that these cases could cost the taxpayer £132m, but its latest contingency figure to cover the impact of the ruling is nearly £71m, excluding legal and administration costs.

John Scott, a human rights lawyer speaking for the Law Society of Scotland, said he believed that figure would have to increase as more claimants came forward.

He said the loophole exposed by the ruling could also mean that more "popular" cases could come to court - such as claims of ill-treatment of elderly people in care homes.

"If you look at this in terms of 'popular' human rights, there's some scope for popular human rights cases more generally acceptable to society to be included and benefit," Mr Scott said.

Around 1,700 prisoners have so far filed compensation claims for being forced to "slop out" - where inmates in chiefly Victorian-era prisons were forced to use covered chamber pots as toilets in open view of their cellmates. Roughly 220 claims have been settled, at an estimated cost of £400,000.

A prisons spokesman said up to £1.5m a week had been spent recently on ending slopping out. The last jail to use a more modern design of portable toilet - Peterhead near Aberdeen - is due to be closed down and replaced by a new "superjail" nearby.

"The Scottish government has made considerable financial commitments to providing a prison estate fit for purpose for the 21st century," the spokesman said. "This will eliminate the conditions which have given rise to many of these claims."

Mr Kelly said the service had also overhauled its handling of segregation cases - which traditionally were decided on the "whim" of a prison governor with no independent scrutiny. Even so, there were thousands of "legacy" cases waiting to be dealt with, he said.